CORINNA  SHATTUCK 

‘  V  (  c <»^ufH^<o>fri,***r**i<*****g» 

MISSIONARY  HEROINE 


CORINNA  SHATTUCK 

MISSIONARY  HEROINE 


PREPARED  BY 

EMILY  CLOUGH  PEABODY 


PRINTED  BY 

The  Woman’s  Board  of  Missions  of  the  Interior 
Room  1315,  19  S.  La  Salle  St. 

CHICAGO,  ILLINOIS 

1913 


I 


Copyright,  1913 

By 

Woman’s  Board  of  Missions  of  the  Interior. 


TO 

MISS  MYRA  C.  PROCTOR 

WHOSE  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  CORINNA  SHATTUCK 

FOR  MANY  YEARS 


MADE  THIS  NARRATIVE  POSSIBLE 


CORINNA  SHATTUCK. 


CORINNA  SHATTUCK—  MISSIONARY 

HEROINE 


“Sacrifice  your  personal  rights  but  be  like  a  rock  for 
your  principles.”  These  words  were  the  motto  on  a  simple 
hand-made  desk  in  an  ancient  city  of  Turkey-in- Asia,  but 
they  reveal  the  spirit  of  the  noble  missionary  who  sat  at  this 
desk  many  hours  each  day  planning  for  her  hundreds  of 
Armenian  orphans. 

All  the  world  knows  how  Corinna  Shattuck  was  true  to 
her  motto  on  that  awful  day  of  the  massacre  in  Oorfa, 
when  she  stood  “like  a  rock”  between  a  ferocious  soldiery 
and  hundreds  of  helpless  fugitives. 

Only  her  closest  associates  know  with  what  persistence 
she  “sacrificed  her  personal  rights,”  as  she  worked  on  half¬ 
pay,  with  only  one  lung,  for  over  twenty-five  years  at  a 
station  three  days  journey  from  the  nearest  missionary. 

“If  she  had  lived  in  the  fifth  century,”  writes  a  friend, 
“the  ascetic  simplicity  of  her  life  would  have  surrounded  her 
head  with  an  aureole  and  her  memory  with  legends;  only 
you  cannot  put  an  aureole  on  a  Puritan  woman  in  a  cotton 
frock,  and  we  are  tired  to  death  of  legendary  sanctity.” 

Corinna  Shattuck  was  born  in  Louisville,  Kentucky,  on 
April  21st,  1848,  of  sterling  New  England  ancestry.  Left 
an  orphan  at  four  years  of  age,  she  was  brought  up  by  her 
grandparents  in  Acton,  Massachusetts.  Here  she  learned 
lessons  of  industry  and  strict  economy,  also  the  value  of  high 
ideals  and  an  earnest  Christian  faith.  She  became  a  teacher 


5 


at  sixteen,  but  three  years  later  her  pastor’s  wife  awakened 
her  interest  in  missions  and  she  entered  the  State  Normal 
School  at  Framingham  in  preparation  for  the  life  of  a  mis¬ 
sionary. 

Having  limited  means  she  was  obliged  to  board  herself 
and  live  very  simply;  but  so  highly  did  she  value  a  good 
education,  these  difficulties  seemed  insignificant. 

To  interest  her  fellow-students  in  missionary  work,  she 
began  correspondence  with  Miss  Myra  Proctor,  a  former 
graduate  of  the  school,  who  had  charge  of  a  hoarding  school 
for  girls  in  Aintab,  Turkey.  It  is  to  he  regretted  that  these 
letters  of  hers  have  not  been  preserved,  for  they  so  impressed 
the  missionaries  at  Aintab  that  Miss  Shattuck  was  asked  to 
join  Miss  Proctor  as  soon  as  possible  after  her  graduation, 
and  she  sailed  for  Turkey,  August  27th,  1873. 

Of  her  first  experiences  she  writes:  “My  journey  was  a 
very  pleasant  one,  for  my  traveling  companions  of  the  mis¬ 
sionary  party  were  like  old  friends.  I  am  almost  useless 
until  I  get  my  tongue,  hut  I  go  to  the  school  every  day  to 
study  and  see  the  girls,  as  I  want  them  to  feel  I  have  an 
interest  in  them.” 

Three  years  afterward  Miss  Shattuck  was  able  to  join 
Dr.  Fuller  in  touring  the  Oorfa  field  where  later  the  great 
work  of  her  life  was  to  be  done.  Of  that  trip  Dr.  Fuller 
writes,  “Those  six  weeks  of  travel,  consultation  and  en¬ 
deavor  fixed  in  my  mind  an  estimate  of  her  devotion,  courage 
and  resource  which  places  her  in  the  front  ranks  of  mission¬ 
aries.  The  following  incident  will  illustrate  my  meaning. 
One  day  Miss  Shattuck  and  several  friends  climbed  nearly 
to  the  top  of  Mt.  Casius  to  watch  the  sunrise  the  following 
morning.  When  it  was  time  to  return  to  the  school  the 
muleteers  saw  their  opportunity  to  produce  a  “corner”  in 


6 


TURKISH  SHEPHERD. 


mules,  and  made  their  prices  so  exorbitant  as  to  be  pro¬ 
hibitory.  While  the  gentlemen  of  the  party  were  considering 
what  to  do,  Miss  Shattuck,  with  characteristic  wit  and  ener¬ 
gy,  found  a  way  to  the  nearest  city  and  from  there  sent  back 
a  caravan  to  take  the  rest  of  the  party  home.  She,  herself, 
did  not  return  to  Aintab  for  several  months,  but  spent  the 
time  in  touring,  and  traveled  nearly  a  thousand  miles  on 
horseback.  “But,”  says  she,  “I  feel  amply  repaid  in  the 
knowledge  I  have  obtained  of  the  people  and  of  the  work  in 
our  great  field.  I  now  plan  to  start  for  Oorfa,  where  I  hope 
to  open  a  school  for  the  more  advanced  girls.  With  the 
exception  of  a  native  assistant,  I  must  go  alone,  as  none  of  my 
associates  can  he  spared  just  now.” 

As  a  teacher  in  Aintab  Seminary,  Miss  Shattuck  might 
have  been  content  simply  to  teach  her  regular  classes,  work 
among  the  women  in  the  city  as  there  was  opportunity  and 
enjoy  the  comfortable  home  of  the  Mission  Station.  But  she 
could  not  forget  those  who  were  more  needy,  and  finally  left 
Aintab,  with  an  Armenian  teacher,  for  a  four  months’  stay 
in  Oorfa.  She  writes  from  there  a  few  weeks  later,  “Our 
school  numbers  thirteen  girls  and  five  women.  The  women 
take  only  Bible  lessons.  They  are  very  regular  in  attendance 
hut  Turkish  is  hard  for  them.  No  ‘four  months’  can  decide 
whether  or  not  our  work  is  successful.  Two  years  is  short 
enough  time  to  fully  inaugurate  a  system  of  schools.  This 
week  we  begin  to  teach  sewing.  The  girls  are  very  anxious 
for  it  and  it  will  act  as  a  bait  and  a  diversion.  We  get  new 
pupils  bv  visiting  from  house  to  house.  Our  girls  come  to 
Sunday  School  and  I  have  organized  two  classes  for  women. 
Pastor  Abouhayat  is  giving  interesting  sermons  on  Sunday 
afternoons.  Such  close  attention  by  the  people  and  such 
splendid  teaching  exercises  by  a  native,  I  have  seldom,  if  ever, 


8 


seen.  Today  there  were  no  less  than  two  hundred  women 
and  girls  present  and  the  men’s  side  of  the  church  was  over¬ 
full. 

“Yesterday  the  Pasha  called  and  as  he  asked  especially  for 
me,  I  was  sent  for.  He  talked  of  my  work  here  and  ex¬ 
pressed  real  interest.  Indeed,  he  was  very  agreeable — but 
how  I  did  long  for  an  American  man.  Sometimes  it  is  hard 
to  feel  myself  so  alone.  I  do  not  want  to  be  bold  and  un¬ 
ladylike,  neither  do  I  want  to  ignore  my  American  citizen¬ 
ship  by  putting  myself  on  a  level  with  natives  in  everything.” 

At  the  beginning  of  the  next  year  (  1878),  Miss  Shat- 
tuck,  taking  with  her  a  native  teacher  and  a  younger  girl  to 
teach  in  the  primary  school,  went  to  Kessab  for  several 
months.  Here  she  was  twice  as  far  away  from  her  Aintab 
associates  and  thirty-six  miles  from  the  nearest  postoffice. 
But  at  the  Annual  Meeting  of  Missionaries,  three  months 
later,  both  she  and  Miss  Proctor  resigned  their  positions  in  th: 
Seminary,  and  asked  the  privilege  of  working  in  the  out- 
stations  of  Aintab.  They  were  assigned  to  Adana  for  the 
school  year,  beginning  in  October. 

The  day  that  the  school  opened,  only  one  girl  was  pres¬ 
ent,  but  in  the  course  of  three  months  there  were  eighty 
pupils.  Although  all  of  these  were  girls  from  Adana  homes 
yet  many  of  them  were  as  rude  as  mountain  children. 

All  that  winter  Miss  Shattuck  had  been  in  poor  health 
and  as  it  was  almost  time  for  her  first  furlough  she  was  ad¬ 
vised  to  go  to  America  for  a  year’s  rest.  Colorado  sunshine 
and  invigorating  air  together  with  some  library  work  at  Col¬ 
orado  College  brought  increased  health,  and  the  encourage¬ 
ment  that  she  might  sometime  return  to  her  work  in  Turkey. 
Occasionally  her  letters  revealed  the  restlessness  she  felt. 
“How  can  I,”  she  writes,  “spend  my  time  in  this  College 


9 


library  doing  mere  manual  labor  which  a  dozen  others  might 
perform  much  more  skillfully,  when  I  could  be  telling  those 
poor  souls  over  in  Syria  of  a  Saviour  who  has  redeemed  them. 
Telling  them,  too,  in  their  own  tongue,  which  I  have  spent  so 
many  months  to  acquire.” 

But  she  was  very  happy  while  in  Colorado,  and  wrote 
to  a  friend,  “I  have  everything  to  be  thankful  for  in  so  many 
of  the  comforts  of  life;  so  many  kind  friends  and  so  much  of 
health  enabling  me  to  enjoy  them.  But  especially  I  give 
thanks  for  a  contented,  restful,  happy  spirit  in  the  realization 
of  what  a  year  ago  I  could  scarcely  endure  the  thought  of.” 
She  transferred  her  church  membership  from  Framingham, 
Massachusetts,  to  the  First  Congregational  Church  of  Colo¬ 
rado  Springs,  throwing  herself  heart  and  soul  into  the  church 
activities,  especially  its  missionary  interests. 

After  four  years  she  was  permitted  to  return  for  work 
on  half-pay  in  the  Girls’  College  at  Marash.  One  lung  was 
practically  useless,  but  she  slept  out  of  doors  during  the  warm 
season,  and  kept  her  hands  so  busy  with  manual  labor  and 
her  thought  so  full  of  plans  for  Christian  service  she  had  but 
little  time  to  think  of  herself.  It  is  most  significant  that  the 
work  which  was  to  distinguish  her  as  a  missionary  still  lay  in 
the  future,  and  covered  a  period  of  twenty-seven  years. 

Her  work  in  Marash  was  largely  teaching  Bible  and 
History,  with  some  touring  in  the  neighboring  mountain 
towns.  In  one  of  her  letters  she  remarks,  “I  find  I  must  do 
more  teaching  in  the  school.  Somehow,  in  spite  of  lame 
Turkish  there  is  something  the  girls  get  from  us  which  they 
do  not  get  from  native  teachers.  Vim  is  the  English  name 
for  it.” 

In  the  summer  of  1892  Miss  Shattuck  resigned  her 
position  at  Marash  and  asked  to  be  assigned  to  Oorfa.  The 


io 


EPHRAIM  TOWER  IN  OORFA 


mission  granted  her  request,  and  accompanied  by  Miss  Mel- 
linger,  a  new  missionary  just  getting  the  language,  arrived 
in  Oorfa  in  October,  and  began  at  once  the  usual  work  in 
Sunday  School,  day  school  and  friendly  visitation. 

Early  in  1895  rumors  of  the  political  troubles  reached 
Oorfa.  Massacres  in  the  Moosh  country  drove  thousands  of 
refugees  into  the  hills  about  the  city  where  they  were  stricken 
down  with  fever.  Miss  Mellinger,  while  caring  for  some 
of  them,  contracted  the  disease,  made  a  remarkable  recovery 
and  went  to  Smyrna  to  recuperate,  leaving  Miss  Shattuck 
alone,  except  for  her  native  helpers. 

In  October  the  city  was  devastated  by  a  mob,  hundreds 
of  shops  being  demolished,  houses  sacked  and  about  sixty 
people  killed.  Soldiers  were  stationed  about  the  Christian 
part  of  the  city  as  guards,  and  none  dared  go  into  the  Moslem 
quarter  or  beyond  the  walls.  The  Christians  were  obliged 
to  give  up  their  fire-arms  and  then  forced  to  open  their  shops 
and  resume  business.  For  a  few  weeks  all  was  quiet,  but 
the  restlessness  of  the  Moslems  suggested  another  uprising. 
Miss  Shattuck  now  made  every  effort  to  remove  her  house¬ 
hold  to  Aintab  but  was  not  able  to  secure  the  necessary 
traveling  permit  from  the  government.  She  writes  at  this 
time,  “No  permit  as  yet.  If  I  cannot  leave  I  accept  in  peace 
the  will  of  God  and  remain.  He  knows  what  He  has 
planned  for  me.” 

On  Saturday  morning,  December  28th,  one  hour  after 
the  long-waited-for  permit  was  granted,  the  anticipated  attack 
came.  M  iss  Shattuck  herself  must  tell  the  story.  From 
Saturday  morning  until  Sunday  night  “innumerable  crowds 
of  Moslem  residents,  joined  by  Kourds  from  the  villages 
and  assisted  by  the  soldiers,  went  about  entering  the  homes, 
ferreting  out  its  hidden  men  and  butchering  them  like  so 


12 


many  sheep.  Women  and  children  were  unmolested  unless 
they  tried  to  protect  the  men.  Later,  the  women  and  chil¬ 
dren  were  removed  from  the  homes  and  taken  in  crowds  to 
Khan,  Mosque  or  Moslem  homes,  while  the  houses  were 
robbed  of  everything,  even  doors  and  shutters.  All  the 
while  this  work  was  going  on  we  were  carefully  protected, 
military  officials  frequently  sending  me  salaams  and  im¬ 
ploring  that  I  ‘be  not  disturbed.’  One  guard  stood  outside 
my  street  door  calling,  ‘This  is  the  house  of  a  foreigner;  it 
is  not  permitted  to  enter  here.’  Neighbors  rushed  in  pell- 
mell  over  our  walls,  our  guards  shouting  that  they  must  not 
come,  and  our  servant  trying  to  keep  them  out.  But  it  was 
impossible  to  stop  them,  and  by  Saturday  night  I  found 
they  were  everywhere;  in  my  private  rooms,  the  kitchen,  the 
stable,  anywhere  to  be  under  my  shadow. 

“Poor  things!  What  was  I  to  do?  I  need  not  say  I 
slept  none  that  night.  I  devised  a  plan,  submitted  it  to  a 
few  of  the  most  reliable  men,  entreated  and  persuaded  them 
to  go  to  the  school-room  of  the  Protestant  church,  and  in  a 
few  hours  I  had  all  the  men  off  my  premises,  hidden  and 
under  lock,  the  key  with  myself,  and  supplied  with  bread 
and  water  for  twenty-four  hours.  It  was  a  heavy  responsi¬ 
bility  I  carried,  but  less  risk  than  to  retain  them  in  my 
home.  Sunday  afternoon  martial  music  was  heard  and  a 
grand  procession  of  military  and  civil  officers  appeared  view¬ 
ing  the  streets  and  homes.  They  requested  entrance  to  our 
yard  and  asked  that  I  appear  on  the  veranda.  Salaams  were 
then  offered  and  they  begged  that  I  would  not  be  disturbed. 
Peering  into  windows,  they  inquired  if  we  had  men  here. 
We  could  honestly  say  ‘No,  only  women  and  children.’  All 
day  there  was  the  smell  of  burning  wool  and  cotton  in  the 
houses  fired,  and  later  the  sickening  odors  from  the  great 


13 


holocaust  in  the  Gregorian  Church,  where  some  three  thou¬ 
sand  having  gone  for  refuge,  perished.  Monday,  the  work 
was  declared  done.  The  Kourds  and  Arabs  were  driven 
away  by  the  soldiers  and  announcements  made  that  people 
were  safe. 

“Slowly  they  began  to  come  out  of  their  hiding  holes — 
wells,  vaults,  drains  and  all  imaginable  places — some  not 
having  tasted  food  since  Saturday.  The  dead  number  about 
five  thousand  and  the  Protestant  loss  is  one  hundred  and  ten. 
Our  pastor  and  several  important  leaders  are  killed.  I  have 
the  pastor’s  six  children  with  me ;  their  mother  died  two 
years  ago  and  they  have  no  one  who  so  properly  as  myself 
can  care  for  them.  My  servant,  Hagopjan,  remained  close 
by  me  through  all  those  perilous  hours. 

“Everybody’s  house  is  empty.  There  is  no  work,  no 
confidence  in  the  Government,  all  are  utterly  crushed.  I 
am  told  that  the  Sultan  himself  sent  a  telegram  for  my  pro¬ 
tection.  While  I  am  thankful  I  am  spared  that  I  may  serve, 
yet  I  would  willingly  have  died  that  parents  might  have 
been  spared  to  their  children.  The  end  we  see  not.  We  are 
in  a  thick  cloud,  but  God  lives  and  we  will  trust  Him  though 
all  expected  help  of  man  fail.” 

Just  after  the  massacre  the  Pasha  sent  an  officer  to  in¬ 
quire  what  Miss  Shattuck  needed  for  her  household.  Her 
requests  were  speedily  granted,  and  among  the  provisions 
was  a  bag  of  white  flour  as  a  special  gift  for  herself.  She 
sent  back  word,  “There  is  no  difference  here;  the  white 
flour  and  the  brown  flour  will  be  used  together  for  all.” 

Miss  Shattuck’s  courage  and  resourcefulness  saved  at 
least  three  hundred  lives  during  those  frightful  hours  of  mas¬ 
sacre.  But  now  she  was  confronted  with  a  situation  which 
taxed  her  abilities  to  the  utmost.  The  hundreds  of  destitute 


14 


people  were  in  need  of  food,  clothing,  and  the  means  to  make 
their  own  living.  Their  faith  in  God  had  received  a  ter¬ 
rible  shock  and  they  questioned  His  goodness.  Before  the 
school  could  be  opened  or  services  resumed  in  the  churches 
relief  work  was  necessary.  Gifts  of  money  from  other  parts 
of  Turkey,  from  the  Red  Cross  Society,  and  from  friends  in 
America  provided  clothing  and  some  few  household  neces¬ 
sities.  The  widows  were  put  at  work  tying  mattresses  and 
quilts,  and  it  was  a  great  satisfaction  to  all  when  conditions 
were  enough  improved  so  that  school  work  could  he  resumed 
and  the  teaching  by  the  Bible  women.  One  sorrowing 
widow  remarked,  “It  takes  the  fire  out  of  my  heart  to  read 
God’s  words.”  Truly,  “God’s  word  and  their  work  were 
the  two  blessed  panaceas  for  those  sorely  afflicted  women.” 

After  as  many  orphans  as  possible  had  been  placed  with 
relatives  and  friends,  there  still  remained  over  three  thou¬ 
sand  unprovided  for.  From  these  Miss  Shattuck  took  sixty 
boys  and  girls  under  her  care,  but  the  number  soon  grew 
to  one  hundred  and  fifty,  although  they  took  none  whose 
mothers  had  been  left  with  less  than  four  children.  Before 
long  the  accommodations  were  overcrowded  and  Miss  Shat¬ 
tuck  was  obliged  to  send  half  the  boys  to  the  German  or¬ 
phanage.  Her  motherly  heart  hated  to  part  with  any  of 
them  for,  as  she  says  in  a  letter,  “Long  has  it  been  in  our 
mind  as  a  hard,  hard  thing  to  send  any  away,  yet  it  is  the 
right  thing  that  about  one-half  go,  so  the  Lord  will  help  us 
over  this.  However,  as  I  looked  them  over  at  prayers  last 
evening  I  was  glad  I  did  not  know  which.” 

Denied  children  of  her  own,  Miss  Shattuck  became  the 
mother  of  Armenian  orphans.  She  had  a  parent’s  heart  for 
them.  There  was  no  woman  in  the  land  who  had  as  big  a 
nursery  as  she,  and  the  organization  of  these  helpless  women 


i5 


AT  THE  SCHOOL  PUMP,  ADANA,  TURKEY. 

and  children  in  different  forms  of  industrial  work  reveals 
her  tireless  energy,  and  her  ability  as  a  business  woman. 
One  of  Miss  Shattuck’s  associates  thus  wrote  of  her:  “Miss 
Shattuck  was  a  born  leader  and  organizer,  and  could  endure 
more  for  a  woman  of  her  physique  than  any  one  I  ever  saw. 
Under  a  somewhat  cold  exterior  was  a  warm  and  sympathetic 
heart ;  but  she  wasted  no  time  in  useless  pity.  She  worked 
better  alone,  but  at  the  same  time  was  a  true  friend  who  was 
not  ashamed  to  tell  one  of  her  shortcomings.  With  her,  a 
thing  was  either  right  or  wrong,  and  she  was  often  so  stern 
with  wrongdoers  it  would  seem  that  she  almost  hated  the 
sinner  along  with  the  sin.  But  not  so;  no  one  forgave  more 
fully  than  she,  yet  it  was  only  after  fruit  was  brought  forth 
meet  for  repentance.  She  wanted  nothing  halfway.  Hers 
was  a  lonely,  hard  life,  but  she  did  her  work  and  a  grand 
one  it  was.  As  an  example  of  unselfish  devotion  and  untiring 
energy  she  has  no  one  who  excels  her.” 

16 


Work  with  the  girls  naturally  began  with  washing, 
cooking  and  sewing,  while  the  boys  learned  to  bake  bread  for 
the  three  Homes,  make  shoes  and  work  in  the  vineyards. 

Like  all  mothers,  Miss  Shattuck  had  not  only  to  provide 
work  for  the  big  hoys  but  recreation  for  the  little  folks,  who 
are  quite  as  wiggly  in  Turkey  as  America,  also  Sunday  had 
to  he  made  a  pleasant  and  helpful  day  for  a  family  of  more 
than  a  hundred  children.  That  she  was  a  wise  as  well  as 
a  kind  mother  is  revealed  in  a  letter  which  she  wrote  several 
months  later  in  regard  to  one  of  her  boys  who  had  made 
considerable  trouble.  “The  solid  satisfaction  we  take  in  that 
fellow  now  so  contrasts  with  the  extreme  trouble  he  formerly 
caused  us,  we  praise  God  and  hope  for  the  most  hopeless  of 
the  rest  of  the  set.” 

Many  difficulties  had  to  be  met  before  the  industrial 
work  was  established.  In  this  devastated  region  business 
was  stagnant,  and  a  market  was  necessary  for  their  goods. 
There  was  no  money  to  supply  even  the  material  needed  to 
keep  two  thousand  people  at  work,  or  provide  competent 
teachers.  For  the  widows  it  was  necessary  that  they  should 
be  taught  to  earn  their  living  at  once,  while  the  boys  needed 
more  to  learn  a  good  trade  for  future  use. 

Even  ip  America  the  organizer  of  industry  is  one  of  the 
greatest  benefactors  in  any  community.  Often  the  pros¬ 
perity  of  hundreds  of  homes  is  dependent  upon  his  genius. 
How  much  more  must  this  have  been  true  in  that  desolated 
region  where  the  organizing  genius  was  a  frail  woman  with¬ 
out  capital  or  competent  assistants,  and  a  market  three  thou¬ 
sand  miles  away. 

Oriental  silk  embroidery  was  revived  and  this  together 
with  delicate  work  on  handkerchiefs  and  collars,  gave  regular 
employment  to  the  women.  There  was  very  little  demand 


1 7 


for  this  work  in  Turkey,  so  after  four  years’  experience  Miss 
Shattuck  visited  Europe  to  make  arrangements  with  several 
wholesale  firms  for  the  disposal  of  goods. 


SCHOOL  GIRLS,  TURKEY. 

It  is  gratifying  to  know  that  a  German  firm  and  the 
McBride  Company  in  Belfast,  Ireland,  became  her  agents, 
they  furnishing  material  and  paying  for  the  work  done. 
From  this  time  the  embroidery  work  was  established  on  a 
successful  business  basis  and  additional  workshops  were 


opened  in  adjoining  towns.  Over  two  thousand  women 
and  girls  were  regularly  employed  and  five  hundred  dozen 
embroidered  handkerchiefs  were  shipped  every  week. 

So  crowded  were  the  living  rooms  of  the  station,  first 
with  the  boxes  and  bales  for  the  relief  work,  and  later  with 
materials  for  the  embroidery  industry  that  for  twelve  years 
M  iss  Shattuck  was  obliged  to  use  her  own  private  room  as  a 
storeroom  and  workroom,  taking  down  her  bed  and  sleeping 
on  a  couch  or  out  of  doors.  Her  generous  nature  led  her  to 
share  everything  she  had  with  the  largest  possible  number. 

But  Miss  Shattuck  never  forgot  that  she  was,  first  of 
all,  a  missionary,  and  no  work  was  ever  given  out  until  a 
passage  from  the  Scriptures  had  been  read  and  explained, 
and  a  prayer  offered.  She  also  required  certain  hours  of 
study  that  all  might  learn  to  read  God’s  word. 

Thus  the  widows  and  orphan  girls  learned  the  blessed¬ 
ness  of  work  to  relieve  great  sorrow;  were  taught  to  sup¬ 
port  themselves  and  live  the  Christian  life. 

While  M  iss  Shattuck  was  in  England  arranging  for 
the  embroidery  work  of  her  women,  she  held  meetings  in  all 
the  large  towns  and  cities  to  raise  money  for  the  support  of 
the  orphans.  But  England  was  absorbed  in  the  South  Afri¬ 
can  war  and  the  visible  results  of  her  winter’s  work  were 
few.  In  the  spring  she  went  to  the  United  States,  and  here 
also,  the  slowness  with  which  her  work  progressed  almost 
overpowered  her.  “Say  nothing  to  any  but  the  Father,”  she 
writes,  “but  it  is  getting  to  be  almost  an  anxiety,  and  that 
is  forbidden.”  Later  some  large  gifts  came  that  were  very 
acceptable,  so  that  when  she  started  for  Turkey  in  September, 
she  was  very  happy  over  all  that  had  been  accomplished. 

“The  Lord  has  prospered  my  undertaking,  and  I 
worked  faithfully  to  the  very  end,”  she  writes  a  friend. 


19 


Arriving  in  Oorfa  in  September,  1900,  she  says,  “The 
land  never  looked  so  drear,  or  the  home  so  in  need  of  paint 
and  polish,  but  I  am  exceedingly  happy  in  being  here;  glad 
to  find  my  helpers  all  well  and  the  children — how  they  have 
grown !’’ 

She  had,  however,  a  real  disappointment  in  failing  to 
bring  with  her  a  trained  and  efficient  young  man  to  take 
charge  of  the  boys  and  their  work,  and  it  was  not  until  four 
years  later  that  she  found  the  man  needed — Mr.  George 
Gracey  of  Belfast,  Ireland.  Now  began  systematic  work 
with  the  boys.  A  tailor  shop  and  shoe  shop  were  opened,  also 
shops  for  carpentry  and  iron  work.  The  boys  were  allowed 
small  wages  for  their  work  which  was  paid  to  them  when 
they  graduated  and  was  often  sufficient  to  start  them  in 
their  trade. 

Many  times  manual  labor  roused  the  boys  to  better 
intellectual  work,  while  working  together  also  helped  to 
overcome  race  prejudice,  as  there  were  Moslem  apprentices 
in  the  shops  and  occasionally  a  Hindu. 

Farming  was  an  important  part  of  their  training,  for 
the  people  of  that  region  needed  to  he  taught  how  to  culti¬ 
vate  the  soil.  Considerable  livestock  was  owned  and  cared 
for  by  the  school,  and  the  extra  buildings  necessary  were 
put  up  by  the  hoys. 

That  Miss  Shattuck  was  a  woman  of  strong  faith  and 
wide  vision  is  shown  in  a  letter  concerning  the  industrial 
work.  She  wrote,  “I  feel  the  great  need  of  bringing  forward 
the  common  people  more,  although  the  thought  of  others  is 
for  educated  strong  leaders  in  school  and  pulpit  work.  I 
favor  that  heartily,  but  feel  we  need  also  skilled  workmen  to 
support  such  leaders  and  appreciate  them.  I  would  like 
manual  labor  not  to  be  so  despised  by  our  college  graduates. 


20 


PLOWING  IN  TURKEY 


I  feel  that  our  young  fellows,  as  they  enter  upon  their  trades, 
should  have  more  skillful  fingers,  more  inventive  power. 
Then  they  would  desire  to  do  differently  from  their  fathers 
and  grandfathers  and  become  advanced  workmen  instead  of 
plodding  forever  through  life  at  a  scanty  existence.  The 
missionary  movement  is  taking  this  form  even  in  dark  Africa, 
and  if  not  during  my  opportunity  with  these  boys  it  will  some 
day  be  true  here.” 

Miss  Shattuck’s  presence  commanded  respect  from  every 
class  of  people.  Among  the  Turks  her  masterfulness  and 
ability  to  bend  men  and  events  to  her  will,  greatly  impressed 
them. 

The  story  is  told  by  her  servant,  Hagopjan,  of  her  trip 
to  Ibrahim  Pasha’s  camp,  three  days’  journey  by  horse¬ 
back,  to  secure  protection  for  her  Orphanage  farms  which 
were  terrorized  by  the  raids  of  his  horsemen.  Scouts  in¬ 
formed  the  Pasha  of  the  approaching  party  and  he,  himself, 
came  considerable  distance  on  foot  to  meet  them,  an  atten¬ 
tion  he  was  never  known  to  pay  to  any  man.  He  took  Miss 
Shattuck  very  courteously  by  the  arm,  as  soon  as  she  had 
dismounted,  and  led  her  into  his  tent  of  audience  to  the  place 
of  honor  by  his  right  hand.  The  great  tent  was  crowded  to 
the  door  with  Arabs.  Afterward  he  invited  Miss  Shattuck 
into  the  inner  apartments  where  his  chief  wife  received  her 
cordially  and  proceeded  to  prepare  dinner  with  her  own 
hands.  When  dinner  was  served  both  of  the  wives  of  the 
Pasha  sat  at  the  meal  unveiled. 

The  first  afternoon,  according  to  the  Arab  custom,  the 
Pasha  asked  no  questions  as  to  Miss  Shattuck’s  errand.  So 
she  did  not  suggest  the  subject  until  evening  when  the  Pasha 
invited  her  to  do  so.  Then  he  called  the  three  Arabs  who 
cultivated  the  Orphanage  farms  and  had  accompanied  Miss 


22 


Shattuck,  and  charged  them  to  be  free  from  any  anxiety, 
saying,  “If  a  lamb  of  your  villages  is  lost  I  will  repay  it  with 
a  camel.” 

When  it  was  time  for  Miss  Shattuck  to  leave,  the  Pasha 
held  the  stirrup  of  her  horse  for  her  to  mount  and  walked 
along  some  distance  to  bid  her  God-speed.  The  two  villages 
were  always  absolutely  safe  after  that  trip  and  the  Pasha 
sent  a  beautiful  blooded  Arab  horse  as  a  pledge  and  token 
of  respect  to  Miss  Shattuck. 

Several  times  the  Arabs  tested  her  power  as  mediator 
and  she  had  many  unusual  experiences.  The  following  story 
is  told  in  one  of  her  letters:  “Our  good  Arab,  Hamed, 
although  innocent  himself,  belonged  to  a  tribe  a  member  of 
which  had  killed  an  Arab  of  another  tribe  several  years  be¬ 
fore,  and  the  avenger  was  seeking  Hamed.  The  Sheik  had 
promised  safety  till  the  end  of  the  harvest,  but  all  said  I  must 
go  and  arrange  for  the  man’s  pardon.  I  left  in  the  afternoon 
in  our  springless  wagon  with  my  servant  along  with  me. 
The  jolting  hurt  my  poor  weary  head  so  much  I  felt  I  had 
made  a  serious  mistake  to  undertake  the  journey.  In  the 
evening  an  Arab  of  a  neighboring  tribe  entreated  that  we 
remain  in  his  big  tent  over  night  and  we  accepted.  He 
killed  a  lamb  and  prepared  the  usual  feast,  which  we  ate 
by  moonlight  and  then  I  slept.  An  hour  after  sunrise  we 
had  bread  and  voghourt  and  went  on.  I  had  heard  while  on 
the  way  that  the  Sheik  was  in  the  city  and  I  prayed  con¬ 
stantly,  ‘show  me  Lord,  what  I  can  do  if  I  am  to  act  at  all ; 
I  came  for  this.’  We  held  a  conference  with  the  head  men 
of  both  tribes  who  said  I  must  go  in  person  to  those  who  de¬ 
manded  Hamed’s  death.  We  asked  several  prominent  per¬ 
sons  to  go  with  us;  one,  a  Christian  merchant  to  act  as  in¬ 
terpreter,  and  with  a  full  wagon  we  came  to  the  home  of 
the  young  man  who  had  been  killed. 


23 


“The  first  thing  I  saw  in  the  darkened  room  as  I 
entered  was  a  pale,  glaring-eyed  woman  lying  on  her  bed 
‘near  to  death'  they  said.  Her  husband,  her  son  and  a  cousin 
were  on  one  side  of  the  room  and  our  party  on  the  other. 
The  conversation  began.  I  stated  that  I  had  come,  not  for 
a  reprieve  for  a  few  months  but  for  full  pardon  for  the  one 
whom  they  sought  to  kill  in  revenge  for  their  son.  At  once 
the  father  poured  forth  a  volley  of  fierce  words;  the  dying 
woman  slowly  rose  in  hed  and  fixed  her  glassy  eyes  on  me.  I 
looked  the  pity  and  entreaty  that  I  felt  as  I  again  pleaded  for 
a  definite  answer.  The  woman  finally  pressed  her  hand  to 
her  heart  and  said,  ‘I  grant  it.’  Then  her  husband  did  the 
same,  then  the  son.  The  cousin  now  put  on  a  fierce  look  and 
spoke  at  length.  I  watched  the  faces  about  me  and  cried  in¬ 
wardly  to  God  to  spare  from  blood  then  and  there  for  others 
were  also  growing  fierce.  I  allowed  but  one  at  a  time  to 
speak,  and  urged  the  cousin  to  give  his  answer.  Finally 
he  said,  ‘I  grant  it,’  and  the  fifth  relative  also  granted  it. 

“Then  the  aged  brother  of  our  Hamed  rose,  came  across 
and  kissed  the  father  and  others  and  I  said,  ‘Our  work  seems 
done.  Let  us  thank  God  and  I  will  go.’  The  father  then 
said,  ‘Has  anyone  in  all  these  years  ever  come  to  my  house 
entreating  me  before?  She  has  come  all  this  distance,  would 
not  anyone  yield?’  How  I  longed  to  tell  them  of  our  (and 
their)  Mediator!  The  lesson  has  burned  deep  in  my  soul 
ever  since.  Then  an  immense  copper  tray,  four  feet  in  diam¬ 
eter,  full  of  rice  and  meat  was  set  before  me  and  I  invited 
the  family  and  others  to  sit  down  and  eat.  Later  they  said, 
‘Had  the  Sheik  been  here  it  could  not  have  been  done  so, 
but  this  is  far  better.’  ‘May  it  prove  so,’  I  said  and  prayed 
with  them.  So  good  is  again  seen  out  of  adverse  circum¬ 
stances  and  I  felt  the  jolting  far  less  coming  home,  partly 


24 


because  I  rode  in  the  saddle  over  the  roughest  portion  and 
partly  because  I  was  very  happy.  Dear  people!  That  ‘love 
is  the  fulfilling  of  the  law’  is  the  thought  ever  before  me  as 
I  see  and  listen  to  them.”  Her  own  words  reveal  her  in¬ 
ner  life  of  these  days.  “I  have  too  little  leisure  for  long 
communing  with  God,  but  I  do  keep  by  the  Saviour’s  side 
and  I  look  constantly  to  Him  for  guidance.  It  is  a  sweet 
almost  strange  life  that  I  have  walked  step  by  step  through 
these  intricate  ways,  and  have  seen  the  snarls  untangle  and 
the  grand  blessing  continue.  I  tremble  lest  something  upset 
it;  yet  I  will  not  distrust.” 

Being  in  one  of  the  most  isolated  and  dangerous  parts 
of  Turkey,  three  days’  journey  from  the  nearest  mission 
station,  Miss  Shattuck  had  but  few  guests  and  often  for 
months  she  saw  no  one  but  natives.  Yet  she  was  extremely 
social  by  nature,  and  had  a  way  of  making  much  of  her 
friends  whenever  they  visited  her.  She  once  wrote,  “How 
many  times  do  we  ‘entertain  angels  unawares’  from  the  lack 
of  love  and  skill  to  draw  them  out.”  Miss  Shattuck  always 
discovered  ‘the  angel’  in  her  visitors! 

Severe  in  all  things  which  pertained  to  herself,  she  was 
wonderfully  sympathetic  in  the  suffering  of  others.  This 
sympathy  found  beautiful  expression  in  the  work  for  the  blind 
which  Miss  Shattuck  began  in  December,  1902,  and  which 
is  now  known  as  the  Shattuck  School  for  the  Blind. 

An  orphan  teacher  in  the  day  school,  Mary  Harootoon- 
yan,  lost  her  sight  and  through  Miss  Shattuck’s  influence 
was  able  to  go  to  the  Royal  Normal  College  for  the  Blind 
in  London,  where  she  learned  the  Braille  system  and  be¬ 
came  very  skillful  in  the  use  of  the  typewriter. 

Returning  to  Oorfa  she  gathered  the  blind  children  of 
that  neighborhood  and  taught  them  to  read.  In  a  few 


25 


months  this  work  developed  into  a  school  which  was  very 
dear  to  Miss  Shattuck’s  heart.  She  never  wearied  of  visiting 
the  pupils  and  watching  their  progress  in  the  common 
school  studies,  Bible,  music,  mat  weaving  and  lace  making. 

The  happiness  of  study  and  work 
transformed  these  afflicted  children, 
and  as  one  girl  said,  “At  home,  when¬ 
ever  a  guest  came  to  see  us,  like  a 
mouse  I  disappeared  at  once.  Now 
I  can  entertain  company  and  talk  to 
them  on  different  subjects  and  quite 
forget  that  I  am  blind.” 

In  the  summer  of  1908  occurred 
the  political  changes  in  Turkey  and 
the  proclaiming  of  the  new  constitu¬ 
tion.  Miss  Shattuck’s  letters  tell  of 
great  restlessness  among  the  people 
and  defiance  of  all  authority.  Travel¬ 
ing  without  a  permit  being  at  last 
possible,  everyone  wanted  to  go  some¬ 
where,  and  many  could  not  distin¬ 
guish  between  liberty  and  license.  “It 
is  a  hard  year,”  she  says;  “for  all  who 
have  any  Armenian  groups  to  manage.” 

The  great  financial  responsibility  of  the  Orphanages 
and  the  heavy  demands  of  the  Industrial  plant  were  becom¬ 
ing  too  heavy  a  burden  for  Miss  Shattuck  alone.  The  sad¬ 
dening  massacre  at  Adana,  where  several  of  her  friends 
among  the  native  pastors  and  teachers  were  killed,  and  where 
Mary,  her  blind  teacher,  was  held  captive  for  so  long  that 
she  was  mourned  at  Oorfa  as  one  who  had  perished,  had  a 
crushing  effect  upon  Miss  Shattuck,  who  was  now  in  very 


One  of  the  youngest  in  the 
Oorfa  Blind  School. 


26 


feeble  health.  At  length  she  determined  to  go  again  to 
America  in  search  of  a  helper,  for  she  felt  that  if  she  could 
only  come  in  touch  with  Christian  young  people  she  could 
persuade  some  young  man  and  his  wife  to  carry  on  her  work. 
She  thought  also  that  a  complete  change  and  rest  would 
enable  her  to  recuperate  as  she  had  done  before,  and  so  in 
April,  1910,  she  left  for  America. 

That  last  evening  in  Oorfa  she  sat  in  bed  surrounded 
by  her  orphan  boys  and  girls.  With  tearful  eyes  they  sang 
her  favorite  hymns  and  three  blind  girls  sang  in  English, 
“God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again.”  Miss  Shattuck’s 
parting  word  to  them  was,  “I  have  no  greater  joy  than  to 
hear  that  my  children  walk  in  the  truth.” 

Faithful  friends  met  her  at  different  stages  of  the  jour¬ 
ney  and  gave  what  assistance  they  could.  All  tried  to  per¬ 
suade  her  to  give  up  the  long  voyage  but  she  was  sure  the 
sea  air  would  be  beneficial.  She  made  but  one  record  in  her 
notebook  of  the  entire  journey — “Came  to  Serouj  in  six 
hours.”  This  tells  us  better  than  words  how  feeble  she 
really  was. 

Sick  and  alone  she  took  the  steamer  Romanic  April  27th, 
but  went  at  once  to  her  stateroom  and  did  not  leave  it  dur¬ 
ing  the  whole  voyage.  Fortunately  Dr.  and  Airs.  William 
Allen  Knight  of  Boston,  discovered  that  the  sick  lady  was 
Corinna  Shattuck  of  Oorfa,  and  everything  possible  was 
done  for  her  comfort  during  the  rest  of  the  journey.  On 
arriving  at  Boston  she  was  taken  to  a  hospital  and  later  to 
the  Cullis  Home,  where  she  wrote  to  her  friend  Aliss  Proc¬ 
tor,  “I  am  at  last  hidden  in  a  good  place.” 

But  the  work  of  the  frail,  weary  missionary  was  done; 
and  peacefully,  Sunday  morning,  Alay  22nd,  1910,  she  en¬ 
tered  paradise. 


27 


One  almost  regrets  that  she  was  not  permitted  to  die 
in  the  country  where  she  had  given  her  life.  Yet  it  must 
be  remembered  she  never  laid  down  her  work.  Death  over¬ 
took  her  while  she  was  still  on  the  march  in  search  of  a 
successor,  and  the  very  day  she  died  she  talked  hopefully 
of  future  plans. 

The  faithful  Armenians  of  Oorfa  would  have  asked 
no  greater  privilege  than  to  have  ministered  to  their  beloved 
missionary  those  last  days  of  her  life.  Denied  this,  they 
marked  her  resting  place  with  a  granite  stone  bearing  the 
words,  “In  loving  memory,  by  the  Oorfa  Armenians.” 

Although  the  body  of  Corinna  Shattuck  rests  in  her 
native  land,  her  heart  lies  buried  in  the  lives  of  the  Armenian 
Christians  of  Oorfa.  She  fought  the  good  fight;  she  kept 
the  faith.  To  repeat  her  own  words,  “The  Lord  prospered 
my  undertaking  and  I  worked  faithfully  to  the  very  end.” 
A  worthy  summary  of  the  noble  life  of  Corinna  Shattuck — 
Missionary  Heroine, 


28 


